Some supermarkets have removed a Nestle milk powder that contains too much iodine while other stores are monitoring the situation closely.
The zhejiang Province Industrial and Commercial Administrative Bureau announced on Wednesday that Neslac Gold 3+ Growing Up Milk, produced by a Nestle subsidiary in Heilongjiang Province, surpassed the national standard on iodine content. The Zhejiang bureau requires unqualified products to be removed from store shelves.
Nestle china said in a written statement that the higher level of iodine found in the test was due to the natural variation of the component in the raw milk supply.
It claimed the slight deviation from the national standard does not affect the nutrition or safety of the product. It also claimed the level of iodine in the product was in line with international standards of follow-up formula.
City food officials said they would not follow Zhejiang's lead at present.
"The national administration hasn't required us to remove the product from shelves," said Gu Zhenhua, an official at the Shanghai Food and Drug Administration. "We have enhanced inspection of children's food including milk powder this year and didn't detect the same problem.
"Stores can decide whether to sell the product or not."
Group auchan, a France-based chained supermarket, said that all its stores in the country have removed the suspicious baby formula.
"As milk powder is for babies, we have to be especially careful," said an official from its public relation department.
Other supermarkets were still waiting.
A manager identified as Gao from Hualian Supermarket Co Ltd said its chain stores were still selling the product. Gao said no government department asked them to remove the Neslac Gold 3+ powder.
Medical experts said that either a lack of iodine or too much iodine can lead to enlargement of the thyroid gland.
However, the medical community hasn't identified the relationship between the amount of abused iodine and its effect on health.
Several local mothers said that they will consider milk powder purchases in the market more carefully.